Sunday, December 20, 2015

Report : WEEI extends an offer to fill a vacant Red Sox radio roleTim Neverett is pretty close to taking over one of baseball's most prized sports broadcast roles according to the report in Friday's Boston Herald.After 9 years in the Red Sox radio booth, Red Sox play-by-play man Dave O’Brien is shifting from WEEI 93.7 over to the team-owned regional sports outlet New England Sports Network(NESN) to replace popular broadcaster Don Orsillo who was let go by the club in late summer(BRW 8/31). As a result of Orsillo-O'Brien move, a major void was created in the radio announcing team. So far, the 33-year Sox radio fixture Joe Castiglione is currently the only voice signed to work 2016. As reported by Steve Buckley in the Herald, this situation will likely change as early as next week when New Hampshire native. Tim Neverett officially signs the team’s offer to become Castiglione’s partner on the radio side.Neverett, 49, a graduate of Emerson College, spent the past seven seasons as a play-by-play voice for the Pittsburgh Pirates, alternating select games on KDKA radio and regional cable TV station ROOT Sports.. Prior to joining the Pirates' broadcast team, Neverett served as a pre- and post-game host for the Colorado Rockies and covered college sports for FOX Sports Rocky Mountain. He freelanced for NBC Sports during 2004 and 2008 Olympic games as baseball announcer.Neverett, the 1984 graduate of Nashua High School, initially broke into professional baseball as one of the youngest broadcasters in the history of the sport, calling select games as a 19-year-old for the Nashua Pirates.He has yet to formally accept the position in the Red Sox booth(he's currently on vacation in Colorado), although he met with team officials earlier this week according to Buckley's report.The Red Sox are going into the final season of a monster 10-year, $200-million dollar radio contract with WEEI's corporate parent Entercom. The radio company has reportedly lost millions of dollars on an overvalued deal which thru its course had encountered a nasty economic recession and is still battling on-going media advertising crunch. Entercom also declined to exercise a 2-year renewal for 2017 and 2018 seasons using the same financial terms of the expiring deal.The club and Entercom are currently working out a new deal in an exclusive negotiating window. WEEI's GM and Entercom Boston market manager Phil Zachary was hoping to close the deal by Christmas as he told Boston GLobe's media writer Chad Finn a couple weeks ago. If/when Neverett accepts the club’s offer, one would presume his deal will likely be tied into the new multi-year agreement with WEEI and ensure stability in the radio booth for seasons to come. Neverett will also be considered Castiglione's eventual replacement as the Hall of Fame broadcaster will be turning 69 in March.Stay tuned. More details to follow in this space next week.

Christmas tradition continues on...broadcast radioAfter a 3 year-absence from broadcast radio, Oedipus, legendary Boston radio programmer and DJ is returning to a familiar platform for his 38th annual Christmas Eve broadcast which will air this Thursday(12/24) from 6pm to Midnight. This time around, Boston's longest-running radio holiday show will be hosted at the studios of pubcaster WGBH 89.7 in Brighton according to the station.For those outside of Boston area or with preference for non-broadcast platforms, it will be streamed at wgbh.orgIt's a tradition Oedipus had started back when he was working as WBCN 104.1's part-time nigh-time jock in 1978. When he moved into WBCN's program director chair in 1981, he decided that the only person who should work on Christmas Eve should be the boss. And so for over 35 years, Oedipus has never missed a live Christmas Eve show(WBCN 104.1 1978 to 2008, WFNX 101.7 from 2009 to 2011 and on Boston.com's streaming station RadioBDC from 2012-2014.

BRW Notebook : I Am What I Play : Speaking of WBCN and special holiday week radio events, "An Evening with Boston Radio Legend Charles Laquidara" and screening of "I Am What I Play" documentary will take place on Wed, Dec 23rd at 7:30pm (Doors 6:30pm) at 500-seat Regent Theater in Arlington. Tickets are $15 in advance and $18 at the door. More details are here.
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Saturday, November 21, 2015

Magic 106.7's variety once again includes Christmas tunesIt’s beginning to sound a lot like Christmas.

Boston's WMJX/Magic 106.7 flipped the official holiday switch on Friday(11/20) at 5pm, changing formats to all-Christmas music with Burl Ives' "Holly Jolly Christmas".This is the fourth year in the row that the FM radio station, owned by Greater Media,, has rebranded as “Boston's Christmas Station” for the holiday season.

This year Magic will have commercial-free "Christmas hour" at 8:15am and 2:15pm each weekday. In addition, the MAGIC OF CHRISTMAS tradition will continue with commercial-free music from 6pm Christmas Eve through 8pm Christmas Day. More details from station's press release.(If you miss the regular Magic 106.7's playlist of Adele, Maroon 5, Kelly Clarkson, etc, you can find them all on WMJX 106.7 HD2 sub-channel stream thru December 25. WMJX 106.7 HD2 is typically all-Christmas during the year).

For those who like their Christmas music without commercial interruptions, WODS 103.3 HD3 offers a non-stop streamwhich kicked off on Sunday, November 1st.BRW Notebook : Holiday Shows : WXKS/Kiss 108’s Jingle Ball 2015 is part of the national iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour, the season’s biggest annual music tour scheduled a stop a TD Garden in Boston on December 10th. The line-up will include The star-studded lineup features: The Weeknd, Calvin Harris, 5 Seconds of Summer, Demi Lovato, Nick Jonas, Tove Lo, Hailee Steinfeld and Natalie La Rose.... WBMX/Mix 104.1's annual holiday concert, Not So Silent Night is on Wed., December 9th at the House of Blues. This year's line-up includes Fall Out Boy, Elle King, Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, and Jamie Lawson.News and programming notes : WRKO 680/"The Voice of Boston" raised over $357,000 during last week's 2nd annual Fisher House Radiothon. One of the highlights of the fundraiser was when Boston native and Hollywood celebrity Mark Wahlberg phoned in his support, with a $100,000 donation to help Fisher House continue its efforts to build comfort homes that support families of recovering military men and women at VA and military facilities nationwide...According to Boston Globe's sports media writer Chad Finn, Entercom Boston, had received approximately 200 applications for the opening on WEEI 93.7's Red Sox radio broadcast booth, a spot that became available when Dave O'Brien moved over to NESN. The list of candidates has been narrowed to 5 - WEEI's midday personality Lou Merloni is among them - with a partner for longtime Red Sox voice Joe Castiglione expected to be announced sometime before Thanksgiving....Can you believe that it's the 50th anniversary of the "Alice's Restaurant Massacre," commonly known as "Alice's Restaurant"? The usual suspects - WROR 105.7, WXRV 92.5 and WZLX 100.7 - will continue its tradition of playing Arlo Guthrie's folk classic on Thanksgiving Day at Noon..Voices and Names : WEEI 93.7's Glenn Ordway had one Halloween scare when doctors at Brigham and Women's Hospital had discovered and removed large cancerous growth in his colon. Ordway had collapsed prior to Jets-Patriots game in Foxboro on Sun, October 25 and was rushed to the hospital Ordway returned to WEEI two weeks later and told his story to the audience...UMass Boston's WUMB 91.9 has moved host Brendan Hogan from evenings to The Morning Show. Jess Phaneuf took over 7-10 PM weekdays. Phaenuf came to WUMB after seven years at MVYRadio on Martha's Vineyard...Barry Armstrong who buys and programs two hours a day on WRKO 680 with his "Financial Exchange" show might be in hot water with the state regulators who have been investigating various financial advice talk shows on the radio dial. Armstrong faces a fine as well as possible suspension of programming and advertising for a month or two if the state rules against him. More in the Globe's story here...Candy O'Terry who exited Magic 106.7 after 25 years earlier this year(BRW 3/27) was recently named Massachusetts Broadcaster of the Year....Arun Rath, who just recently left his LA-based role as weekend host of NPR’s All Things Considered, has moved to Boston as a correspondent for WGBH News. He was previously senior reporter for WGBH-produced programs Frontline and The World. Rath will be based out of the WGBH newsroom, but this doesn’t mean he’s leaving NPR. He’ll split his time reporting for both, with a focus on neuroscience....After nearly 9 years as music director/assistant program director/morning show producer Jim Clerkin exited WXKS/Kiss 108 last week...Fomer WBCN and WFNX personality and host of Patriots Radio Network, Bill Abbate has recently joined the weekend line-up at WXRV/92.5 The River...Presidential election season is like Christmas music for news and talk radio formatted stations. Boston Herald profiles WBZ 1030's "NightSide" host Dan Rea. "NightSide" which debuted in October 2007 is the only local nightly topic talk show in the Boston market.... After a two-year battle with cancer, former longtime Boston radio personality Jimmy Roberts had passed away in Florida last month. Roberts had worked at WROR 98.5, WBMX 98.5, WKLB 105.7 and WROR 105.7 between 1979 and 1998.

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

"Deflategate" shuffles September's radio deck a bitWith only a minor shuffling of the deck, it’s pretty much status quo when it comes to how radio stations ranked in the latest ratings issued by Nielsen Audio(formerly Arbitron).The top-ranked stations three months ago are still the same top 10 in these ratings taken August 13 to September 9th. And except for two sports stations -- WBZ/98.5 the Sports Hub and WEEI/Sports Radio 93.7 - taking sizeable jumps and making lots of noise with that little media-manufactured story known as the 'Deflategate' which finally came to a temporary halt on Sep. 3rd, and market's second country music station - WBWL 101.7 The Bull - making a noteworthy leap thanks to a new improved signal, Boston's top 20 is pretty much intact as well.Market's usual Top 5 suspects - WROR 105.7(classic hits), WKLB 102.5(country), WBZ 1030(News/Talk), WXKS 107.9/Kiss 108 and WMJX/Magic 106.7 had to share some real estate with WEEI and the SportsHub last month but for the most part the Big 5 had a very good summer.WRKO 680's Rush-free line-up which debuted back in late June had a first full month under its belt but took another downward hit in the September survey. Obviously, the station needs a bit more time to get its new morning Boston.com morning show worked out and new high noon time for Jeff Kuhner is also an adjustment for his followers.Here are Boston's Top 25 stations among listeners ages 6 and over from August 13th thru September 9th :

Station

Format

Owner

July

August

September

WROR
105.7

Classic Hits

Greater Media

6.7

7.6

7.2

WMJX/Magic
106.7

AC

Greater Media

5.9

6.1

6.3

WBZ/98.5 The
Sports Hub

Sports

CBS Radio

4.6

4.9

6.0

WBZ/News
Radio 1030

News

CBS Radio

6.2

5.8

5.6

WKLB/New Hit
Country 102.5

Country

Greater Media

6.2

6.2

5.6

WEEI/Sports
Radio 93.7

Sports

Entercom

4.4

4.6

5.4

WXKS
107.9/Kiss 108

Top 40/M

iHeartMedia

5.5

5.7

5.4

WZLX 100.7

Classic Rock

CBS Radio

4.1

4.2

4.7

WBMX/Mix
104.1

Hot AC

CBS Radio

4.2

4.1

4.2

WBQT/Hot
96.9

Rhythmic AC

Greater Media

3.6

3.6

3.4

WBUR 90.9

News/Talk

Boston University

3.4

3.2

3.2

WBWL/101.7
The Bull

Country

iHeartMedia

2.1

2.1

3.2

WBOS/My
Radio 92.9

Alternative Rock

Greater Media

3.7

3.6

3.1

WXRV/92.5
The River

Adult Album Alternative

Northeast Broadcasting

2.9

3.0

3.1

WAAF
107.3/WKAF 97.7

Active Rock

Entercom Boston

2.8

3.3

2.9

WJMN/Jamn
94-5

Top 40/R

iHeartMedia

3.4

3.2

2.9

WGBH
89.7/Boston Public Radio

News Talk

WGBH Foundation

2.1

2.3

2.2

WODS/AMP
Radio 103.3

Top 40/Mainstream

CBS Radio

2.4

2.2

2.2

WRKO 680/The
Voice of Boston

Talk

Entercom Boston

2.8

2.4

2.1

WCRB/Classical
99.5

Classical

WGBH Foundation

1.7

1.8

1.8

WXLO 104.5

Hot AC

Cumulus Media

1.6

1.9

1.8

WCTK-FM

Country

Hall

1.3

1.0

1.2

WERS 88.9

Variety

Emerson College

0.7

0.8

0.6

WKOX/Talk
1430

Spanish Cont

iHeartMedia

0.4

0.3

0.3

WEEI/ESPN on
850

Sports

Entercom Boston

0.2

0.1

0.2

BRW Notebook : Can we talk?! : On September 14th, Salem Media flipped WBIX 1260 to a new hybrid format which currently features Salem's national talk line-up and will also be adding financial/business talk shows in the coming days/weeks. The station is now known as the AM 1260 The Buzz. … WGBH 89.7 named former ABC News staffer Kate McCarthy Zachry as News Director, and Aaron Schachter, from PRI’s The World, as Executive Producer and Editor...In August, Michael Czarnecki was named Operations Manager and Assistant Program Director at news/talker WRKO 680. Czarnecki joins the 'Voice of Boston' from his previous positions as program director for iHeartMedia/Clear Channel’s country WRNX/Kix 100.9, and Assistant PD for iHeartMedia co-owned stations WHYN/News Radio 560 and WHYN/Mix 93.1 in the Springfield market. His radio resume also includes prior on-air and production stints in Hartford, Manchester, NH, Providence and in Boston at Mix 104.1, Oldies 103.3 and currently weekends on WAAF 107.3 where he goes by on-air name "Mike Logan". Entercom/Boston VP/Market Manager Phil Zachary says Czarnecki stood out in a strong field of candidates. “If our applicant pool is any indication, the future of the News/Talk format is in very good hands,” he said. “I was particularly impressed with the creativity and enthusiasm across a wide spectrum of prospects, but in the end Michael was the complete package of experience, vision and local knowledge. He’ll be a terrific addition to the WRKO team” Czarnecki takes over programming chores previously handled by Bill Cooksey, who left the station for another opportunity outside radio in July.

Monday, August 31, 2015

Ordway returns to WEEI via midday openingAfter the story was first reported last November, WEEI 93.7 and Glenn "Big O" Ordway reunion will finally become reality next Tuesday morning(9/8) when local sports radio veteran will return to the Entercom-owned sports talker. In his new role, Ordway who along with a fellow WEEI personalities Dale Arnold(2-6pm weekdays) and Craig Mustard(9-11am Saturdays) helped to launch all-sports format in Boston 24 years ago this Thursday(9/3), will join former Boston Red Sox infielder Lou Merloni and ex-New England Patriot Christian Fauria weekdays from 10am-2pm. He officially replaces Tim Benz who left the station last month to return to Pittsburgh(BRW 7/31). Ordway filled in the mornings on WEEI over this past summer but he has been off the station in a regular weekday role for two years, six months and 25 days(BRW 2/14/13).In WEEI's press release, Entercom/Boston VP/Market Manager Phil Zachary said the time is right for Ordway’s return to WEEI. “There is no one in Boston media who better understands the passion, pride and peculiarities of New England sports fans than Glenn Ordway. In an era where copycats are far too often the norm, Glenn is a true and timeless original with legions of followers eager to hear his views every day.”BRW Notebook :Changes in radio booth : Dave O’Brien who has been part of the Red Sox radio broadcast team at WEEI 93.7 for the past nine years will be moving on to TV side by accepting a play-by-play role on team-owned NESN starting with 2016 season, it was announced last week. O'Brien also works for ESPN where he calls Monday or Wednesday night baseball games during Sox season and college basketball during the offseason. With his new NESN assignment he will continue to work for ESPN in a scaled down capacity. The question now is who will replace O'Brien in WEEI radio booth as the station and the team head into final year of their 10-year radio deal. Look for WEEI's midday voice Lou Merloni to be a part of Sox radio broadcast team in full or part-time role come April 2016.My summer reading : While CBS Radio's WBZ 1030 is the undisputed news/talk king in Boston, there is a pretty interesting two-station battle taking place between pubcasters WBUR 90.9 and WGBH 89.7. Read details here.

Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Menna named VP/Market Manager For Greater Media BostonGreater Media has named Mary Menna as VP/Market Manager for its Boston cluster which includes classic hits WROR 105.7, country WKLB 102.5, alternative rock WBOS 92.9, adult contemporary WMJX 106.7 and rhythmic WBQT 96.9. She succeeds Rob Williams, who is leaving the company after 3 1/2 years (BRW 1/30/12) to join Townsquare Media in Greenwich, CT. Williams has been commuting to Boston from CT during his time with Greater Media's 5-station Dorchester-based group. Menna joined Greater Media as general manager at WMJX 106.7 in May of 2014. Prior to that, she worked as the Market President of Clear Channel/Ihear Media Boston, where she spent 25 years serving in a variety of capacities, including director of sales, general sales manager, national sales manager and account executive. While in that capacity, she also managed Clear Channel’s Providence market for four years. Menna began her radio career straight out of Boston College at WBCN-FM.She starts Monday (8/24).BRW Notebook :It's your fall song : Boston's transition from summer to fall is now officially under way with WBMX/MIX 104.1 announcing its 24th annual, free MIXFest concert the Hatch Shell on Saturday, Sept. 19 at 2pm. This year’s lineup will include Rob Thomas, Third Eye Blind, Andy Grammer, Vance Joy, Rachel Platten("Fight Song").Summer Shows : WXRV 92.5 The River which celebrated its 20th anniversary on August 1st is holding its annual, free Riverfront Music Festival at the Waterfront Park in Newburyport on Saturday, September 5th. Among the six acts in the line-up are the headliners the English Beat. For more information and times, see details here....It's a long summer time tradition. WBOS/Radio 92.9 is presenting after work concerts at Copley Square Park in August. The free shows, located in front of the historic Trinity Church, run from 5:00-8:00PM. All details are here.

Sunday, August 16, 2015

Sports Hub's Toucher and Rich to simulcast on Comcast SportsNet New England

Comcast SportsNet New England and WBZ 98.5 will bring the Sports Hub's "Toucher and Rich" show to television for the first time starting Monday(8/17), it was announced on Friday(8/14). The program, hosted by Fred Toettcher and Rich Shertenlieb, will be simulcast on CSN New England every weekday from 6 to 10am. The agreement was signed in early March.

Toucher and Rich arrived in Boston in June 2006 when they began hosting an afternoon-drive show on now-defunct WBCN 104.1. They switched to mornings at WBCN in December 2008 and then shifted over to the 98.5 Sports Hub when the sports talker launched in August 2009.

In addition to four hours of live programming weekday mornings. CSN New England also simulcasts Sports Hub's afternoon drive "Felger and Mazz" which became part of its schedule in mid-November 2011.

BRW Notebook :Names and Voices : Speaking of the SportsHub, former NFL linebacker Steve DeOssie has joined the station's Patriots Post Game show host by midday host Marc "The Beetle" Bertrand. DeOssie was a football analyst with WEEI 93.7 since 2001. As part of rebooting Patriots radio pre and postgame shows this season, the Sports Hub also added Boston Globe's sports writer Chrs Gasper as Bertrand's co-host on Patriots Preview. Gary Tanguay and Andy Gresh previously served in these roles. The ballot box : Voting for the 2015 National Radio Hall Of Fame inductees has begun.For the first time in five years, Radio Hall of Fame's chairman Kraig T. Kitchin has reinstituted national public engagement through social media balloting for eight nominations in two categories — music format on-air personality and spoken word on-air personality.Four of those categories will be voted on by a voting participant panel comprising 400 industry professionals.The nominees to be voted on by listeners nationwide include two syndicated personalities heard locally: Ryan Seacrest(on Kiss 108 from 10am to 2pm) in the music format on-air personality and Sean Hannity(on Talk 1430 from 3pm to 6pm) in the spoken word on-air personality. Voting is open thru August 26th and details on how to vote by text can be found here.The categories to be voted on by voting participant panel are: longstanding local/regional (20 years or more); active local/regional (10 years or more); networks/syndication (10 years or more); and longstanding network/syndication (20 years or more). There are no locals nominated in any of those categories.

The 24 nominations in six categories were determined by the organization's steering committee.Inductees will be announced Aug. 31. The induction ceremony will be Nov. 5 at the Museum of Broadcast and Communications in downtown Chicago.

Monday, August 10, 2015

The Radio Ratings Leaderboard Starting To Look All Too Familiar As WROR Wins Again

Chalk up another victory for WROR 105.7. The Classic Hits pop rocker ranked first again in the monthly PPM Arbitron ratings released last week.

For the 6th consecutive month Greater Media's WROR kept its Number One ranking with a 6.7 rating, a .5 decrease from the previous month. Its sister station WKLB/New Hit Country 102.5 remained at number two but sharing that position with CBS Radio's news/talk WBZ/NewsRadio 1030 which gained an 0.8 from June with big local stories such as Boston Olympic bid, Tom Brady's Deflategate appeal, Boston Marathon bomber's sentencing and continued arrests of locally-grown terrorists.

Greater Media’s adult contemporary WMJX/Magic 106.7 held fourth place, and maintained a 5.9 rating for the second straight survey. WXKS/Kiss 108 rounded up the Top 5 with 5.5 but still away ahead of its direct rival - WODS/AMP 103.3 in 17th place with a 2.4.Some worries for classic hits WZLX 100.7 which had a solid June, but it lost all the recovered numbers from May and then some in the July survey. WZLX's loss was its sister station WBZ 98.5/The Sports Hub's big gain. The Sports Hub gained a full share in July which also came at the expense of other male-oriented formats. The Sports Hub finished 6th overall nudging out its direct competitor WEEI 93.7 which came in 7th place. WEEI was definitely impacted by what can only be described as pathetic performance by the Red Sox in June and July. The Sports Hub capitalized with a meteoric surge from #7 to #1 in the "money demo"(listeners ages 25 to 54). Other male-oriented formats like alternative rocker WBOS 92.9 and mainstream rock WAAF 107.3/WKAF 97.7 slid a bit.In the 18-34 demographic, country was king as WKLB/Country 102.5 came at #1 followed by WXKS/Kiss 108 which took the top prize among 18-49 listeners.

BRW Notebook :Names and voices :iHeartMedia New Hampshire announced that John Laurenti has been named Program Director for WHEB 100.3 in Portsmouth and WGIR/Rock 101 in Manchester effective August 17. Laurenti is a veteran New England Broadcaster who most recently was heard on weekends on WZLX 100.7 in Boston. He also held previous roles with Greater Media's WBOS 92.9, CBS at Oldies 103.3 in Boston and WHJY in Providence...WRKO 680's midday host Jeff Kuhner signed a new contract to remain with the Voice of Boston for the foreseeable future...Tim Benz who resigned as midday host at WEEI 93.7 after 14 months(BRW 7/31) is happily back in Pittsburgh working for his wife's employer - Tribune-Review - where's he's a new 10am-1pm co-host for TribLive's on-line sports radio show.

Friday, July 31, 2015

With Benz leaving, WEEI's midday seat is up for grabs Earlier this week, after only 14 months Tim Benz had stepped down as the midday co-host of "MFB" (Merloni, Fauria, Benz) on sports talker WEEI 93.7.(BRW 5/13/2014)Boston-born and CT-raised Benz is returning to his adopted home of Pittsburgh where he had spent much of his sports radio career, where his wife, Kate, still works for Pittsburgh Tribune Review as the lifestyle/culture reporter and where a new sports radio gig supposedly awaits him. Last November, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that Benz was considered as a serious contender for a vacant morning host role at CBS-owned Fan 93.7.While WEEI will run on-air auditions for the new midday co-host pretty much the entire month of August(call it a radio training camp), the new midday voice raises several intriguing possibilities for the station in revamping the show, which airs from 10 am to 2 pm Monday through Friday.One option could be the return of WEEI’s legendary afternooner Glenn "Big O" Ordway who had done some vacation fill-in work on "Dennis and Callahan" morning show earlier this summer. Speaking of Ordway, his on-line "Big Show Unfiltered" afternoon show has been hiatus since mid-April.Also considered to be very strong possibilities are former Patriots Radio Network host Gary Tanguay, WEEI's Sunday morning NFL show host Greg Dickerson; and WEEI's weekend ready-for-prime-time benchers Danny Picard and Christian Arcand are definitely in the mix. BRW Notebook :Names and Voices : The second phase of WRKO 680's new lineup(BRW 6//25) kicked off this past week, when it replaced Mark Levin with “The Dave Ramsey Show” from 7 to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday. An expert on personal finance and debt reduction, Ramsey is the author of five New York Times best-selling books, including The Total Money Makeover and Financial Peace. Ramsey's show focuses primarily on financial advice for listeners, but sometimes will move into various other topics including politics (Ramsey is conservative) and religion (Ramsey is a born-again, evangelical Christian). He hosts his self-syndicated show from a radio studio set up within his house in Brentwood, TN. He started in radio as the co-host of "The Money Game" in 1992, taking over the show and renaming it "The Dave Ramsey Show" in 1996. The self-syndicated program is heard on over 500 stations around the country and feeds live from 2pm to 5pm ET. As for Levin, he can now be heard on IheartMedia's new WKOX/"Talk 1430" from 9pm to Midnight.

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Jamn makes a morning change - Ramiro's out, Frankie's in

In a move that may shock his loyal listeners, popular morning DJ Ramiro Torres Jr. has been replaced at WJMN/Jamn 94-5, it was announced by IheartMedia Boston earlier today. As was mentioned only here first, Ramiro wasn't willing to negotiate a new contract with the station where he has been working for the past 21 years, in the morning drive since October 2001.(BRW 7/16/15). The station pulled him off the air after July 10th show. Jamn issued a statement regarding Ramiro's exit :: “Ramiro decided he did not want to renew his contract with us. We appreciate all the years he gave us. He’ll always be a member of the Jam’n family and we wish him well.”

Ramiro's replacement is a Framingham native, Frankie Vinci who arrives from another IheartMedia's Top 40 outlet in San Diego, KHTS/Channel 93.3. The new show is now re-branded as "The Jam'n Morning Show with Frankie and Ashlee" and debuts on Mon day, July 27 at 6am. Coming home is somewhat a bittersweet time for Frankie whose brother is Mikey V, the night DJ at sister station Kiss 108(BRW 11/25/13). Their dad passed away a little over a week ago.

Here is the official IheartMedia Boston press release on the morning show change at Jamn :

iHeartMedia Boston Announces the Debut of

"The Jam’n Morning Show with Frankie & Ashlee"

Boston – July 22, 2015 – iHeartMedia Boston announced today the debut of "The Jam’n Morning Show with Frankie & Ashlee," beginning Monday, July 27 on Jam'n 94.5, Boston's No. 1 for Hip-Hop. Frankie Vinci will now join Ashlee Feldman to host mornings on Jam'n 94.5.

"The Jam’n Morning Show with Frankie & Ashlee" will air weekday mornings from 6-10:00 a.m. ET. The new show will feature daily lifestyle discussions, entertainment and hip-hop music news with Ashlee’s Sleaze and “3 Things Your Friends are Talking About.” The show will continue the long tradition of “Jam Scams” three times each morning. Frankie joins the Jam'n morning show from within iHeartMedia. He has hosted mornings on Channel 93.3 in San Diego since 2010. His experience on-air includes roles at KIIS-FM in Los Angeles, Kiss 95.7 in Hartford and at sister station Kiss 108 in Boston. Frankie was born in Boston, raised in Framingham, Mass. and is very active within the community, supporting a number of charities including After School All Stars, Boys & Girls Club of America, St. Baldricks and Ronald McDonald House.

“Frankie is one of our rising stars in iHeartMedia, and we are thrilled to be able to bring him back to Boston and Jam’n 94.5,” said Dylan Sprague, Senior Vice President of Programming, iHeartMedia Boston. "Frankie’s open, honest and vulnerable personality creates unique conversations that made him a success in San Diego. Being a Boston kid and Jam’n fan growing up, I know Frankie understands this city, our music and the lifestyle of the Jam’n listener. Pair that with Ashlee Feldman’s deep connection with the Jam’n audience and you have a show that will be fun, edgy and will give young Boston a real voice on the radio.”

"People may wonder why I'm giving up the perfect weather of San Diego for the snow, rain and funny Boston accents, but Boston has been and always will be my home. Growing up I always listened to Jam'n 94.5 and now I am going to host the morning show. Dreams do come true," said Frankie. Thank you to iHeartMedia for allowing me this opportunity to go home."

Jam'n 94.5 is a leading media outlet in the Boston market and its programming and content are available across multiple platforms, including its broadcast stations; online via its branded digital sites; mobile; and social, with nationwide listening through iHeartRadio — with its more than 600 million downloads, more than 75 million social media followers and 87 million digital uniques across the Network.

BRW Notebook :Morning drama : Speaking of morning changes, in the previous update it was mentioned that Jamn 94-5's big sister station Kiss 108 had cut its longtime Matty in The Morning executive producer Kendra Petrone. According to the Boston Herald's Inside Track, Petrone found out about herreplacement while leaving the station when she checked her phone. It turns out her corporate e-mail wasn't yet de-activated, Kiss 108's competitor, AMP 103.3's TJ Taormina weighed in on the Herald's artcile. You can hear ithere.

Saturday, July 18, 2015

New addition to Matty in the MorningWXKS 107.9/Kiss 108 announced that Medha Gandhi,great-great-granddaughter of one of the world's best known historic figures, Mahatma Gandhi, will be the new executive producer of one of Boston's top-rated morning drive shows -"Matty in the Morning Show". She replaces Kendra Petrone, who exits the show and Kiss 108 after 8 years.Gandhi joins the "Matty in the Morning Show" from IheartMedia's Top 40 station WNCI 97.9 Columbus, Ohio where she has served as executive producer of the Dave and Jimmy show and their syndication network for the past eight years. She is an accomplished comedy writer, parody song producer and voice talent.Here's the official release :

KISS 108 WELCOMES MEDHA GANDHI TO THE MATTY SHOW AS EXECUTIVE PRODUCER

Boston– July, 2015 – WXKS-FM 107.9 KISS 108, Boston's Number One Hit Music Station, announced that Medha Gandhi will be the new executive producer of the Matty in the Morning Show from 6a.m. to 10a.m. beginning today.

“I can’t wait for Medha to join the team here in Boston,” said Matt Siegel, host of the Matty in the Morning show. “She has great passion and energy and will be a great addition to the show.”

“Medha will bring a new dimension to the Matty in the Morning Show! She is a talented comedy writer and content creator who’s not afraid to speak her mind. Plus she is wickedly funny! No doubt she will energize the Matty team.” said Dylan Sprague, Senior Vice President of Programming for iHeartMedia Boston.

Medha joins the Matty in the Morning Show from WNCI in Columbus, Ohio where she has served as executive producer of the Dave and Jimmy show and their syndication network for the past eight years. She is an accomplished comedy writer, parody song producer and voice talent. Medha is the great-great-granddaughter of Gandhi and is very involved with various charitable organizations like the MDA, The Alzheimer's Association, and many others.

"Being a part of Dave & Jimmy was an amazing, life-changing experience. I will forever love them like family, but I can't even express how excited I am to get such a HUGE opportunity to work with guys like Matty, Dylan and the KISS 108 team," said Medha. "I'm SO GEEKED, and I've been working really HAHD on my accent."

Fans can also listen to KISS 108 FM on the station's website, www.KISS108.com, as well as on iHeartRadio.com and the iHeartRadio mobile app, iHeartMedia’s all-in-one music streaming and digital radio service. iHeartRadio is available across web, mobile phones, tablets, automotive partners, smart TVs, gaming devices and more.

iHeartRadio is free for listeners to use and delivers everything listeners want in an all-in-one platform: Instant access to thousands radio stations from across the country, user-created Custom Stations inspired by a favorite artist or song, thousands of curated digital stations "Perfect For" any mood or activity, and a Podcast feature giving users access to the best on-demand news, talk and entertainment content available today. To see all available platforms and to download the app, visit iHeartRadio.com/apps.

About iHeartMedia Boston:

iHeartMedia Boston owns and operates WXKS-FM, WXKS-AM, WXKS-HD, WJMN-FM, WBWL-FM, WKOX-AM and is part of iHeartMedia. With 245 million monthly listeners in the U.S., 97 million monthly digital uniques and 196 million monthly consumers of its Total Traffic and Weather Network, iHeartMedia has the largest reach of any radio or television outlet in America. It serves over 150 markets through 858 owned radio stations, and the company’s radio stations and content can be heard on AM/FM, HD digital radio, satellite radio, on the Internet at iHeartRadio.com and on the company’s radio station websites, on the iHeartRadio mobile app, in enhanced auto dashes, on tablets and smartphones, and on gaming consoles.

iHeartRadio, iHeartMedia’s digital radio platform, is the No. 1 all-in-one digital audio service with over 500 million downloads; it reached its first 20 million registered users faster than any digital service in Internet history and reached 60 million users faster than any other radio or digital music service and even faster than Facebook. The company’s operations include radio broadcasting, online, mobile, digital and social media, live concerts and events, syndication, music research services and independent media representation. For more company information visit iHeartMedia.com

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BRW Notebook :Seacrest in : In related Kiss 108 news, Ryan Seacrest has reupped with iHeart Media for three more years, keeping the radio component of his media empire intact.Terms of the deal were not announced, but it is believed to include a healthy raise from his last contract, which ran about $25 million a year.Seacrest, 40, who is heard mid-days(10am-2pm) on Kiss 108, will keep his daily show and his weekly features, including "American Top 40 Countdown" which is heard on Kiss on Sundays(8am-Noon).He also will continue as a corporate adviser with iHeart, working on special events and corporate branding.

Names and Voices : The Super Bowl champs Patriots' first pre-season game is only 4 weeks away, and their radio network will have a brand new pre and postgame crew after the past 10 years. As first reported by Boston Globe's sports media writer Chad Finn back in January, Gary Tanguay and Andy Gresh are gone as co-hosts. Marc Bertrand who replaced Gresh back in mid-February(BRW 2/15) on the station's midday show was also named as the new pre-game and post-game host in the same announcement. The remaining piece of the Patriots Radio Network puzzle was completed on Thursday(7/16) as Bertrand's former Saturday morning show partner, Chris Gasper of the Boston Globe has been officially named as co-host of the Patriots radio pregame show. Gasper was a contributor to Patriots Preview for the last 8 years but now enters into a bigger co-host role on a 3-hour pregame.Recognition time : South Shore's AC station WATD 95.9 in partnership with The Raynham Channel, has won the national Hometown Media Award for their local music show "Almost Famous". WATD's Music Director John Shea created Almost Famous 4 years ago to showcase indie artists from the emerging Boston music scene. The Raynham Channel (based in Raynham MA) has been filming the live in-studio performances since last year. The winning show was aired on October 7, 2014 and features singer-songwriter Christa Gniadek. The award will be presented to The Raynham Channel by the Alliance for Community Media which recognizes excellence in Community Access TV. The video producer was Margaux Fortier. The award ceremony will be held on Thursday, August 13 during the Alliance for Community Media Annual Conference at the Hilton Pasadena in Pasadena, CA,....National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) announced the finalists for the 2015 NAB Marconi Radio Awards, honoring radio stations and on-air personalities for excellence in broadcasting. Some Chicago stations and shows made the short list of finalists. Two Boston radio entries are both in the same category this year: WZLX 100.7's midday man Carter Allan an WBZ 98.5 the SportsHub's afternoon team "Felger and Mazz' are nominated for Major Market Personality of the Year. Marconi winners will be announced during this year's annual NAB Radio Show in Atlanta on October 2nd.